


Symbiosis

by Yeenteeth



Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: Fuckin PROPS to grey-aria on tunglr for making this au, If you dont know abt this au its the shit honestly, Symbiosis au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-14
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 11:53:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14769098
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yeenteeth/pseuds/Yeenteeth
Summary: A one-shot for grey-aria on tumblr!!





	Symbiosis

**Author's Note:**

  * For [grey-aria (tumblr)](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=grey-aria+%28tumblr%29).



Max grumbled to himself, adjusting his hat and casting back a glare at the latest shark who couldn't take a joke. He had to admit to himself maybe making rather hurtful comments as he worked was not in the best taste, but it was how he worked. If he was to be honest, he was a little shaken. Deep in the corners of his mind he preferred to push away, he feared he might never find a host who could tolerate him. That thought made his tail move a bit faster. If he wasn't some shark's plus one, he was an open snack to anyone who enjoyed the taste of surly pilotfish. He was so lost in thought he didn't even notice there was someone in front of him until he smashed right into a leathery tail, which moved a bit as the fish it belonged to did. 

"What do we have here? You sure look lonely, little guy!" A concerned looking face peered at him. 

Max noted, a bit nervously, that he was much smaller than this fish was. But he kept up his facade of disinterest. "Yeah, yeah." He dismissively waved a hand. "What's it to ya?"

"Well, I was just worried! Someone so small is bound to be in heaps of danger out here all by yourself!" The big dope's eyes were shiny and friendly, tinged with concern. 

"Whatever. What even are you, besides an idiot?" Max raised a skeptical brow and looked down at the medical bag slung over the larger fish's shoulder. "Nurse shark?" He guessed, eyeing him all over.

"Yes I am! My name's David, pleasure to meet you!" His eyes shone and he grinned sharp teeth at Max.

Somewhere deep in his chest, Max felt a little bit of hope well up. "Yeah, its an honor or whatever. You got any parasites?" He was blunt and to the point. The almost annoyingly pleasant nurse shark grinned wider. Max knew that David knew that was an offer. 

"Well..." David tapped his chin in thought. "I do have this hook in my tail." He raised his caudal fins so Max could see the fishhook lodged in the upper one. Max rubbed his hands together.

"Yeah, thats probably crawling with stuff. Lemme at it," Max demanded. 

David grinned again. Max was already getting tired of that face, but at the same time he wasn't. "Feel free to stay as long as you like, little buddy!"

"Don't call me that," Max hissed as he started on David's tail. "It's weird."

David nodded. "Whatever you say!" He gave Max a little salute and another broad, obnoxiously sunny grin. 

****

David turned out to be not quite as bad as Max thought he would be. Aside from the occasional whistling and humming of whatever songs he heard from boats passing over and the occassional attempt at small talk, he was kind of alright. Max swam dutifully up to his face, too consumed in his work to make nasty comments. "Lemme see those teeth, David."

Without stopping moving, David obediently opened his mouth as wide as it would go to accomodate his new companion. It was admittedly a little strange to feel something poking around in his mouth, he didn't complain one bit. He would have made a few suggestions if he wasn't afraid of biting down on the little thing by accident. 

"Jesus Christ! Have you ever had a pilotfish around before?!" Max snarled from in David's mouth. "You've got all sorts of shit stuck in here!" 

David wasn't sure how Max expected him to answer. He gave a little "uh-uh" in response to the (rather rude) question. 

"Figures. You're annoying as hell. What is with you and fish hooks?!" Max pulled one from between his teeth, earning a little yelp from David, and pulled himself out of the shark's mouth to wave the hook and lure in his face. David's eyes followed it thoughtfully. He shrugged uselessly after a second of thinking.

"It must have been in something I ate." David wracked his brain for a moment, trying to remember a meal with a hook in it. Nothing. "Maybe it just got stuck there," he suggested with a small smile.

"Who fucking knows," Max growled, adding it to the little stash of neat things he had found on hosts under his hat. David watched him with a little smile. Max glared back at him. "Open up, idiot." The nurse shark obliged pleasantly. "What do you even eat? I feel like you'd cry if you killed something. Don't answer that, actually. I don't want to know." 

David had no clue how something so small could be so cranky. Max was pretty cute, if you asked him, but the snippy comments sort of undermined his cuteness. David was happy to have someone around, though, after being so lonely for so long. Even if that someone was a cranky little pilotfish. He had the occasional friend, like Gwen, but they never really stuck around. He liked the thought of having someone new that'd stick around, no matter how surly he was. Max eventually finished his job and wormed his way into David's bag, peering out from under the flap. David smiled back at him and continued moving forward. 

After a while of wandering aimlessly, David decided he was hungry and to try his luck hunting. His luck was not good, as he couldn't manage to catch anything. He frowned and idled in the water, looking around for anything that might be just slow enough for him to grab. Max peered out of his bag.

"Wow. You suck at this," he almost laughed, pointing a hook at him. "How can you not catch a fish, it's literally what you're biologically programmed to do!" 

David couldn't keep back a little frown. "Well there's no need to be rude, Max. I'm trying my best, and that's what counts."

"Your best sucks." 

Something flashed right past David's face and he lunged for it, just missing it with his teeth but snagging it in his claws before it could get away. He smiled brightly, almost smugly, down at Max before biting into his catch with a crunch that made the pilotfish cringe a little. If there was one thing he hated, it was watching his hosts eat. It sort of reminded him of how small he was. But he definetly wasn't scared, especially not of David. He looked away from the blood pouring into the water and decided to settle back down into David's bag instead. David looked concerned, peering at his bag. 

"Is something wrong, Max?"

"Nothing. Youre just gross." Max scowled and rummaged around in David's bag, producing a mug with big letters that spelled out "NOPE" on the front. "Where'd you find this?"

David took the mug gently from Max and examined it. "I think I found this one in a shipwreck! Its the only one that wasn't broken! You can have it, if you really want!"

Max looked at it as David handed it back to him. He turned it over and tossed it between his hands gently. "Thanks," He puffed unenthusiastically, not meeting David's eyes. As David watched for any signs of any emotion, this new mug became the most interesting item Max had ever laid hands on. "What're you lookin' at?" He snapped, decidedly unintimidating to David. 

"Oh, nothing." He responded, spacey-sounding, as he continued on. Max peered out of the medical bag, watching David's tail move and the scenery rush past them. David swam nonchalantly under a massive metal structure. 

"What the hell is that?!" Max watched it loom over them and then disappear into the greenish-blue water behind them.

"I'm not sure, actually. They've never done anyone any harm, but they do shoot things sometimes. I just stay under them and nothing goes wrong!" 

Max looked up at David like he had ten heads, but didn't say anything. He admantly decided that this nurse shark was an idiot. Definetly not endearing, not at all, completely obnoxious and insufferable and annoying. He adjusted his hat and sank back down into David's bag.


End file.
